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The American West: History, Myth, and Legacy

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Course Overview

The brutal conflict of cowboys and Indians. Dusty, dangerous outposts policed by vigilante justice. The six-shooter showdown at high noon. Daring railroad heists and arduous cattle drives. These and other scenes from countless Western films have so shaped our conception of the American West that it’s impossible to separate myth from reality. But how wild was the West? Was it really ever “won”?

According to historian and award-winning Professor Patrick N. Allitt of Emory University, the historical approach to understanding the American West has moved far beyond pop culture in recent years. “Nearly all the clichés and bromides of the old Western history have been discarded,” he says. “We’re now much more aware of the histories, not just of the people who happened to end up on top—but also the histories of the diverse peoples who were defeated or displaced.”

It turns out that the legendary people and events we associate with the Wild West—the last stand at the Alamo, the Battle of Little Bighorn, the exploits of Calamity Jane and Kit Carson, the glories and hardships of the Gold Rush and the Oregon Trail—are just as exciting in the light of history as the tall tales that have defined our conception of them.

Explored chronologically, they form a story more thrilling than any Hollywood Western. And it’s a story not just of adventure and danger but a story about how the United States, as it acquired new territories and encountered new peoples, transformed a collection of newly independent states into a continent-bestriding colossus that would dominate the 20th century.

Designed to shine a light on truths about westward expansion and the American frontier (sometimes uncomfortable, always insightful), The American West: History, Myth, and Legacy is a way for you to experience the grit and grandeur of an epic period in American history. Professor Allitt’s 24 lectures, rich with historical detail, take you from the era of the American Revolution to the beginning of the 20th century and uncover new historical angles and perspectives about events and themes ranging from the Lewis and Clark expedition to the Indian Removal Act to the creation of America’s first national parks. Packed with period maps and artwork, photographs, diary entries, and more, this course is an entertaining, eye-opening, balanced look at the achievements and sufferings of a period and place as important as it was wild.

Over 200 Years of Frontier History

Central to Professor Allitt’s course is dispelling the idea of the American West as a single, monolithic place and idea. There is a great diversity to the American West that it is easy to overlook.

“It’s actually an area almost as big as Europe, incorporating some of the hottest and coldest places in the inhabited world,” says Professor Allitt. “The area we think of as the West today includes mountain ranges, deserts, canyons, badlands and some of the richest, most productive farmland in the world. At different times, it has been inhabited and claimed by indigenous peoples, Spaniards, Frenchmen, Britons, and Americans. Its people today have distinctive voices, clothes, traditions, and music, and they keep alive a distinct set of ideals and attitudes different from those of their fellow Americans back East.”

Befitting an area of such epic scope and diversity, The American West encompasses more than 200 years of history and the most important events, themes, and ideas that form the backbone of the frontier’s reality—and legend. Just some of the major topics you will explore in this course include:

The Transcontinental Railroad: Perhaps the most defining moment for the American West was 1869, when the two lines of the Transcontinental Railroad met at Promontory Point in Utah. While the system brought more people (including immigrants) and money out west, many sections were built so badly they had to be renewed almost at once.

The Trail of Tears: Named the “Trail of Tears” by the Cherokee, the forced migration of America’s “Five Civilized Tribes” in the 1830s resulted in the loss of traditional homes in the East in exchange for federal lands out West (referred to as “Indian Territory”). A central figure in this dark moment in American history: President Andrew Jackson.

Manifest Destiny: This phrase, coined by journalist John O’Sullivan regarding the nation’s claims on the Oregon territory in the 1840s, came to embody the spirit of westward expansion—and the conflicts it provoked. The idea behind Manifest Destiny was that it was America’s God-given right to spread liberty and democracy across the continent.

The Gold Rush: With the discovery of Californian gold in 1848, the American West, for the first time, became a destination of mass appeal for Americans. With the mad rush for quick wealth, however, came rampant fraud. Prospectors had to learn quickly how to distinguish gold from “fool’s gold” (iron pyrites). The simplest way to do so is now the most iconic: biting it.

Cowboys and Cattle: After the Civil War, American cowboys herded cattle to railheads across the West, from where they would eventually feed the industrial workers back East. The most famous cattle trail, the Chisholm Trail (named after a half-Cherokee cowboy) spanned over 500 miles between Texas and Kansas, and could take up to two months to traverse.

The West in Popular Culture

A vivid popular culture sprang up around the American West as the area developed. While Professor Allitt uses these lectures to lay bare the often harsh realities of life out west, he also points out how popular culture—books, paintings, films—can help us understand the intimate details of life for everyday men and women. By looking critically at popular depictions of the West, you will:

Learn about one of the best accounts we have of the cowboy way of life: the 1885 biography A Texas Cowboy, or Fifteen Years on the Hurricane Deck of a Spanish Pony.

Open an illuminating window into the emotional lives of homesteaders on the Great Plains through novels including My Ántonia and Little House on the Prairie.

See how paintings by iconic American artist Frederic Remington emphasized the adventurous men who pitted themselves against the landscape of the West.

Discover how historian Frederick Jackson Turner’s “frontier thesis” (that the frontier defined American democracy) had an immense influence on generations of historians.

Break down the main plots of Western films and understand how new historical understanding has led to a shift in the genre’s plots and characters.

A Clearer Picture of the Wild West

Over the years, Professor Allitt has brought his incredible historical knowledge and his engaging teaching style to multiple Great Courses popular with our lifelong learners. The American West is no exception to this tradition. Professor Allitt imbues every single lecture not only with insight and knowledge, but with a contagious passion for the American West—both the heroic idea of it and the more complex historical reality.

Additionally, the lectures in The American West are enriched with historic photographs and illustrations, period artworks and maps, and quotes from first-person accounts and history-changing documents.

“Anyone who studies the subject of the American West quickly discovers that the myths sometimes had a more tenacious grip on Westerners’ minds than the realities,” says Professor Allitt. “But with a close look at the facts and how they’ve been stretched and spun over time, the muddled picture of the place that many people have in their minds will become clearer.”

Saddle up for an exciting adventure in learning.

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24 lectures

| Average 30 minutes each

1

Westward the Course of Empire

What are some of the ways we think about the American West? How did this vast, fascinating region come into being, and how was it shaped by centuries of myth-making? What is it about westward expansion that has fascinated every generation of Americans? These and other questions are the topic of this introductory lecture. x

2

The West in the Colonial Era

To understand the history of the American West, you have to understand the mark left by its earliest colonists. Among those you'll encounter here are the Spaniards (who introduced horses), the French (who developed a complex trade system), and the English (who, ironically, had little interest at first in colonizing west of the Appalachians). x

3

Venturing beyond the Appalachians

After the Revolutionary War, the land between the Appalachians and the Mississippi became part of the new republic. How was this territory organized? As you'll learn, it started with the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which created a set of new rules that came into conflict with complex old realities. x

4

Discoveries of Lewis and Clark

Follow the fascinating journey of the two explorers who mapped the Louisiana Purchase between 1804 and 1806. Along the way, you'll learn how Lewis and Clark fit into the tradition of explorers looking for a water route to the Pacific, and you'll consider the political (and geographic) history of the Louisiana Purchase. x

5

The Fur Trade and the Mountain Men

Fur traders and mountain men played an integral part in exploring and mapping the American West. Here, Professor Allitt reveals why fur was such a precious commodity; how John Jacob Astor dominated the American fur trade; and how famous mountaineers like Jedediah Smith, Jim Bridger, and Kit Carson became legends. x

6

Trail of Tears

Turn now to one of the most dismal episodes in the story of the American West: the forced migration of the “Five Civilized Tribes” (Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw, and Seminole) under the Indian Removal Act of 1830. It was this ordeal that the Cherokee came to call the “Trail of Tears.” x

7

Struggles of the Plains Indians

From 1830 to 1890, the lives of the Plains Indians changed irrevocably. Topics include our sources for the early history of the Plains Indians (including portraits and archaeology), the importance of buffalo and horses to life on the Great Plains, and two visitors' perspectives on America's treatment of the Plains Indians. x

8

Rebellious Texas and the Alamo

Get the full story behind the last stand at the Alamo and the story of the Texas republic. What led to tensions between the Mexican government and the growing United States? Why is the idea of rebellion so crucial to the myth of Texas? How did the territory eventually join the United States? x

9

Traveling the Oregon Trail

The Oregon Trail has become a symbol of westward migration. In this lecture, Professor Allitt invites you to consider the challenges of the journey, as they were experienced by thousands of travelers. Among the most exceptional were Brigham Young's Mormons, fleeing persecution back East as they headed to Utah. x

10

Manifest Destiny and the Mexican War

In 1846, the United States went to war with Mexico and, as a result, gained the whole of what is now the nation’s southwest region. Welcome to the era of “Manifest Destiny,” which, as you’ll learn, set the stage for the future of California, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and New Mexico. x

11

The California Gold Rush

The California Gold Rush transformed the politics, demographics, and economy of the United States. It also, for the first time, gave the American West an irresistible mass appeal. Discover how the gold rush accelerated westward expansion and, in the process, established some of the first truly multicultural American communities. x

12

Bleeding Kansas and Civil War in the West

Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854, giving new states the right to decide their relationship with slave labor. Explore how this event led to a period of chronic anarchy and low-level warfare on the frontier, and how the American Civil War played out in the western states and territories. x

13

Building the Transcontinental Railroads

For Professor Allitt, the great dividing line in the story of the American West is the construction of the transcontinental railroads, which did more than anything else to link the West with the Eastern states from which they’d emerged. Go inside the myths—and startling realities—of this decisive moment. x

14

Cowboys and Cattle Drives

There is no greater symbol of the American West than the cowboy. But who were the cowboys, exactly? What were their everyday lives like? What did it take to go on a cattle drive along the Chisolm Trail? And why did the arrival of the farming frontier bring an end to the open range? x

15

Homesteaders on the Plains

With the Homestead Act of 1862, public lands became available for anyone willing to settle and farm them. Enter the homesteaders. Explore the frustrations they faced in trying to cultivate the Great Plains, what fiction reveals about their emotions, and how farming difficulties led to the rise of the People's Party, or Populists. x

16

Little Bighorn and Wounded Knee

Examine the period from 1865 to 1890, which marked the end of the Native American resistance to white domination. Two events form the core of this lecture. The first: the massacre of General Custer's cavalry at the Battle of Little Big Horn. The second: the massacre of the Lakota at the Battle of Wounded Knee. x

17

Life in Western Towns and Cities

Survey the five main types of towns that developed in the American West: Spanish towns, mining towns, farming towns, railroad towns, and the Pacific coast cities. Three cities you'll explore in depth are Salt Lake City, laid out in 1847; Chicago, the central metropolis of the West; and the great port city of San Francisco. x

18

John Wesley Powell and the Desert Southwest

Twenty years after the end of the Mexican War, thousands of square miles of desert land the U.S. received had yet to be mapped and settled. That's where John Wesley Powell came in, whose report on these arid regions sparked the rise of irrigation farming techniques that would lead to unimaginable bounty. x

19

Women in the Wild West

What was life like for everyday women in the American West? Some were prostitutes. Others were missionaries. Others still were working- and middle-class women trying to recreate their lives back East. Ultimately, as you'll discover, the experience, while enlarging women's sphere of influence, was nevertheless a conservative one: to create a stable home. x

20

From Territories to Western States

Imperfect and violent—two words to describe how Western territories were created and then transformed into states. In this lecture, go inside this intriguing, often misunderstood process, from the role of influential businesspeople to the copying of other state constitutions to the efforts to give women the right to vote. x

21

Western Violence, Law, and Order

There is no doubt that the American West was a violent place. Why was this so? What kept the region from chaos and civil war? Professor Allitt's brief survey of violence explores the rise of vigilante justice, race riots against Mexicans and Chinese, and class conflict at coalmines. x

22

Protecting Yellowstone and Yosemite

The American West is home to a magnificent series of national parks, two of the earliest of which (and, arguably, the greatest) are Yellowstone and Yosemite. Discover through these case studies how the idea of a park system came into existence through government action and the dedication of conservationists. x

23

Mythology of the American West

Go inside the mythology of the American West, which kept the frontier alive after the U.S. Census Bureau declared in 1890 that it had disappeared. Examine historian Frederick Jackson Turner’s influential “frontier thesis.” Learn about the contributions of novelist Owen Wister and painter Frederic Remington. Also, explore the main categories of Western movies. x

24

Winning the West?

When thinking about the American West, Professor Allitt stresses a balanced view that encompasses both the achievements and the sufferings of this period in American history. It's an insightful conclusion to the grand, fascinating, sometimes troubling story of how exactly America became a vast nation stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific in just a century. x

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Your professor

About Your Professor

Patrick N. Allitt, Ph.D.

Emory University

Dr. Patrick N. Allitt is Cahoon Family Professor of American History at Emory University, where he has taught since 1988. The holder of a doctorate in history from the University of California, Berkeley, Professor Allitt-an Oxford University graduate-has also taught American religious history at Harvard Divinity School, where he was a Henry Luce Postdoctoral Fellow. He was the Director of Emory College's Center for Teaching...

Reviews

The American West: History, Myth, and Legacy is rated
4.7 out of
5 by
106.

Rated 1 out of
5 by
Viewer27 from
If you enjoy detailed animal abuse, please watchStopped watching because I got sick of listening to disgusting stories of animal abuse that were unnecessary.

Date published: 2019-08-30

Rated 5 out of
5 by
NormChris from
Excellent InstructorThis is my third course with Professor Patrick Allitt. As usual, the content and the delivery is excellent. I find Professor Allitt's voice easy to listen to and his delivery style easy to learn from. I highly recommend this course on the American West. I am highly likely to purchase any new courses by this professor.

Date published: 2019-08-08

Rated 5 out of
5 by
TacitusMS from
history behind the moviesIs there no greater mythical place than the legendary "Wild West " ?: Not in the US there isn't ! It seems obvious that professor Allitt grew up in England watching John Ford/John Wayne Westerns and was captivated. John Wayne gets several mentions in this course, but Allitt also gives credit to the likes of Clint Eastwood and Kevin Costner. There are many points of interest in this course...1) during the Revolutionary War period the Appalachians were the ":Wild West" and the frontier just kept getting pushed further Westward. 2) The remarkable journey of Lewis and Clark, 3) Trail of Tears and Native Americans in East 4) Texas from rebellion to republic to state to Civil War, 5) an objective look at "bleeding Kansas " without the silly political correctness so popular today 6) railroads transforming the country 7) warfare at Little Big Horn & Wounded Knee, and Native Americans in the West 8) one armed John Wesley Powell through the Grand Canyon on a wooden boat 9) creation of the US National Parks 10) Western films .
Patrick Allitt is one of my favorite Great Courses professors so I can highly recommend this and his other diverse courses.

Date published: 2019-08-07

Rated 5 out of
5 by
MelindaL from
Great stories/Highly informative/New perspectiviesProf. Allitt has created a course that is lively, engrossing and so thoroughly researched that we are treated to new viewpoints and stories on a subject supposedly familiar. Top notch in every way, I cannot recommend this course too highly.

Date published: 2019-08-04

Rated 5 out of
5 by
Raveneye1 from
The Astute Perception of the Perspicacious OutsideAn absolutely absorbing and brilliant explication of the westward march of CONUS America, from the original colonies across the Mississippi and the prairies and the deserts to the Pacific. One of the best Great Courses we've ever experienced ... and we've gone through more than two dozen! History, development, politics, settlers and indigenous peoples, military, agriculture, railroads, gold rushes, industry, law and order, labor, statehood, parks, art and literature …, all of it. My wife and I went through the superbly structured and focused 24 lessons in five days: couldn't stop! Each lecture is a self-contained topic, with Prof. Allitt providing insightful commentary and further reading suggestions. Every American will learn from this course.

Date published: 2019-07-17

Rated 5 out of
5 by
Bob 94 from
Educates and a relaxing way to learnI have been ordering courses in my interest areas for over ten years. Excellent instructors for the most part. Will continue to order as new courses of interest become available..

Date published: 2019-07-16

Rated 5 out of
5 by
Oregondoc from
AN ENGAGING SERIESI wondered how this British-born historian would present a course about the American west. Now I know: with organization, engaging speaking style, interesting anecdotes, and good humor. This is a great course!

Date published: 2019-07-08

Rated 5 out of
5 by
JKOJr from
Very interesting courseProfessor Allitt who reaches this course is very good. He explains things in very concise and clear lectures and puts in anecdotes about people or places that are both entertaining and enlightening. I highly recommend this course to anyone who is interested in American history or our expansion westward.